accrue

Accrue has two common definitions:

• The accumulation of interest , income , or expenses .
• When a legal cause of action or legal claim comes into existence.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court in Wallace v. Kato, 549 U.S. 384, 388 (2007) , stated that a claim accrues “when the plaintiff has a complete and present cause of action.” The term often comes up in the context of statutes of limitations for tort claims. For example, California Government Code § 911.2 states, “[a] claim relating to a cause of action for death or for injury to person or to personal property for growing crops shall be presented . . . not later than six months after the accrual of the cause of action.”
  • In the context of bankruptcy , the bankruptcy court must consider whether the debtor’s claim accrued, thereby making it an asset of the debtor’s estate .

[Last reviewed in June of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team ]

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